As had been the case for much of the afternoon, the shots caromed harmlessly off the rim, the last two bricks capping a miserable performance in which the Jayhawks set season-lows for shooting from the floor (35.5 percent) and 3-point range (2 for 21, 9.5 percent) while missing 13 of 28 free throws.

"We had good looks, I thought," Reed said. "I don't think we ever lost confidence that we weren't going to make shots. And we kept shooting them, but they just didn't go in."

Kansas had finished first in Big 12 Conference play in 3-point shooting at 40.5 percent. Morningstar (53.1 percent) and Reed (45.3 percent) ranked first and third, respectively.

But that touch was nowhere to be found Sunday at the Alamodome as they combined to shoot 1 for 10 from beyond the arc and 2 for 16 overall.

Reed and Morningstar weren't the only culprits, however. Marcus Morris (8 for 19) and Markieff Morris (5 for 12) shot well under their averages, and the only reserve who played significant minutes, Josh Selby, was 1 for 5.

The only Jayhawk who shot well from the floor was point guard Tyshawn Taylor, who made 6 of 9 field goals. But even he wasn't totally immune, missing 3 of 5 free throws.

Kansas shot just 53.6 percent from the foul line overall. Had the Jayhawks simply reached their season average (68 percent), they would have trailed by only two with 2:28 remaining.

Instead, the Jayhawks were left to suffer an ironic twist of their last visit to San Antonio, when Memphis' woes at the foul line gave them an opportunity to escape with the 2008 national championship.

"It's hard to win when you miss that many free throws," Taylor said.

Though he compared the Alamodome baskets to one of those carnival scams with shrunken rims, Kansas coach Bill Self attributed much of his team's woes to VCU's defensive pressure.

Known as "Havoc," the Rams' strategy is to wear their opponents down by pressing full court and harassing opposing ballhandlers. The results were apparent late in Sunday's game, when Markieff Morris hunched over his knees and had to be helped into a team huddle.

When you're that tired, VCU coach Shaka Smart said, open shots suddenly aren't all that open.

"That's why we play the way we play," Smart said. "And because of that, they missed some shots."